Karina Murski, of Manhattan, waits for the New York City-bound train at the White Plains Metro-North station. (Jan. 25, 2013) (Credit: Xavier Mascarenas)

With Metro-North fare hikes going into effect Friday, riders from stations on the outer edges of the Hudson Valley are trying to figure out how they'll come up with hundreds of dollars that have been added to their annual commuting tab.

"I'm just going to have to figure it out and cut out the little things," said Jim McDonald, an accountant from Rye Brook.

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With Metro-North fare hikes going into effect Friday, riders from stations on the outer edges of the Hudson Valley are trying to figure out how they'll come up with hundreds of dollars that have been added to their annual commuting tab.

"I'm just going to have to figure it out and cut out the little things," said Jim McDonald, an accountant from Rye Brook.

"They should try to find that money elsewhere," she said of transportation officials.

The latest hike is the fourth in five years sought by Metro-North's parent agency, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, as it seeks to close a $450 million hole in this year's $12.6 billion budget. On the commuter rail, the goal is to recoup a 7.5 percent revenue increase, or an additional $26 million.

Also increasing, but on Sunday, is a single fare on Westchester County's Bee-Line. The ride will go up 25 cents from the current $2.25, in keeping with the MTA hike for the MetroCard. The Bee-Line switched to the MetroCard in 2007, giving riders a free transfer to New York City buses and subways.

"Obviously, between that and everything else going up these days, there's only so much to go around," Amy Goldfarb of Rye Brook, who is a New York City accountant, said of the Metro-North fare hikes.

However, there's little end in sight to the pain in the wallet for many commuters. The MTA will be seeking another 7.5 percent revenue hike in 2015, the result of a bailout plan drawn up by Albany lawmakers in 2009.

"I'm not sure it's worth it," Valerie Jones, 25, said as she waited for a Pascack Valley train in Spring Valley earlier this week. "The trains are old."

Jones commutes five or six times a week to Penn Station before heading downtown to take classes at NYU Law School.

The MTA has said it tried to do its part through cost-cutting measures like freezing managers' pay that has contributed to $800 million in annual savings. Officials offered further comment Wednesday.

At the Spring Valley station Wednesday, Quentin Jackson, 25, had just paid $9.50 for a one-way ticket to Penn Station by dropping a $10 bill into a ticket machine. On Friday, he'll have to pay $10.25 to get into the city where he's a film student at Hunter College.

"I do what I have to do," said Jackson, of Spring Valley. "I don't have any choice. But I'm frustrated."